Personal messages: don’t publish them online. Please. Don’t.

Social media vs Personal letters

It is rather annoying, in my opinion, when people publish personal love letters on their social media pages. Like I have a friend that, every year, publishes a long, lovey-dovey message to her husband on their anniversary. Gross. Publishing that publicly is exactly like saying: “I want the world at large to appreciate my extraordinary … Read more

Don’t interrupt me!

Writer

Do you have one of those friends that are always saying “don’t interrupt me” when you’re having a conversation with them? On your side of things, you’re thinking— conversations are all about interrupting. You say something, I say something, you say something, etc. It’s not supposed to be a diatribe. It’s a conversation! These “don’t … Read more

Portal Farmers in our Midst

wildflower

There are people who take the path of least resistance, and these individuals go unnoticed. They’re sometimes even considered powerless because of their refusal to exert overt power or influence over others. Sometimes they seem afraid or even believe that they are afraid, but these are the bravest people because they’re patient. When they effect … Read more

Beware the Black Ice

Air freshener

I got into an Uber recently, and the driver had an air freshener hanging from the rear-view window. It was shaped like a tree but labelled “black ice.” I’d seen these before in my Uber adventures and couldn’t detect the smell but wondered: What is black ice supposed to smell like? Danger? This prompted the … Read more

AI Will Not Replace Me

AI Robot

In a conversation, recently, a friend suggested that Chat GPT was going to replace me pretty soon. I had to laugh. There are some very good reasons why a robot can’t replace me, and I think this is important to talk about for the sake of writers and creative people everywhere. People seem to think … Read more

That’s What You Get for Eavesdropping

Eavesdropping

On my latest trip to Boston, I had a somewhat unusual experience. First, I was in a cafe where a woman was sitting with a bunch of her girlfriends chatting. I’d say she was in her sixties, which I mention because it makes the story more interesting. And she was talking about a vacation she … Read more

Guilt Trips and Guilty Trippers

Guilttrip

I’m realizing something about people who do guilt trips. You know, situations where you’re feeling guilty because the other person gave you a guilt trip about wanting what you want or doing what you want to do. A guilt trip is different from someone saying, “Hey, I don’t like what you did!” It’s passive aggressive … Read more

Let’s all Irrationally Overreact. It’s in Style.

Video Recording

I recently got into big trouble. It was a case of what I have come to call the Amateur Terrorist Posse of Do-Gooding Vigilantes. ATP-DGV. I’ll have to think of a better acronym, and soon. Ok, I was on the NextDoor app. This is an app for people that live in the same town to … Read more